It has certainly been a busy time for Workers’ Compensation Judges (WCJs) in Pennsylvania. We just recently discussed filling the vacancy in the Allentown Workers’ Compensation Hearing Office, and now we have learned of three additional WCJs on the move. Leaving the bench will be The Honorable Nancy Goodwin, who…
Several months ago, we reported that four PA Workers’ Compensation Judges (WCJs) had stepped down from the bench, while only two new WCJs had been named by the Pennsylvania Bureau of Workers’ Compensation. This left a difficult void in some hearing offices, such as that in Allentown. We are now…
As attorneys who represent injured workers in PA, we are often told by our clients that their doctor or physical therapist is not being paid by the workers’ compensation insurance carrier. Moreover, the client is receiving bills from the provider, maybe even notices from a collection agency. This is a…
Through the efforts of concerned citizens, and attorney groups united to support injured people, such as the Pennsylvania Association for Justice, there has been no legislation really harmful to the injured workers in Pennsylvania passed since 1996. Unfortunately, it appears there is now a new threat on the horizon, and…
As attorneys who limit their practice to representing the injured worker in PA workers’ comp cases, we are thrilled by the recent announcement that the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania has approved the process of creating a “certified workers’ compensation attorney” in Pennsylvania (or, in other words, a workers’ compensation specialist).…
Back in October, we blogged about the decision of the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania in City of Pittsburgh v. Workers’ Compensation Appeal Board (Robinson), which addressed what caused a presumption that an injured worker “retired,” entitling the workers’ comp insurance carrier to a suspension of workers’ compensation benefits. The decision…
Readers of this blog, from previous blog entries, know our frustration with the developing practice of workers’ comp insurance carriers “accepting” medical-only claims by issuing a Notice of Denial (NCD). Aside from the logical problem, there are procedural issues this creates for attorneys representing injured workers in PA. For example,…
In the Summer 2010 issue of News & Notes, published by the PA Bureau of Workers’ Compensation, Workers’ Compensation Judge (WCJ) Joseph Hagan was named to be Judge Manager for the Southeastern District of Pennsylvania. Judge Hagan has been a WCJ in this district, working from the Philadelphia Workers’ Compensation…
Some time ago, we made a brief deviation from our normal course of not blogging about own active cases, to discuss a liquor store clerk who was robbed at gunpoint. The PA Liquor Control Board (LCB) denied the claim, stating that being robbed at gunpoint was not an “abnormal working…
As discussed in a previous blog entry, PA workers’ compensation proceedings are usually held in the County in which the injured worker resides. Counties are then grouped by “Districts.” In the State of PA, there are four Districts: Eastern, Southeastern, Central and Western. Hearings for the Eastern District are located…